Pre-Season Odds and Ends

This is what’s on my mind. Certainly I’m not the only one. If you are on Facebook and happen to live in the lower 48, you are thinking this too. The questions aren’t rational, I know. We know that Canada gets much more snow and much earlier in the year, but I can’t help being distraught that “they” (the Canadians) have been riding multiple times and we barely have a skiff of snow on most peaks.

So what do we do…get our sleds out, look at them for a long time, and obsess over every pre-season prep detail! I bet you are in the same boat. So…

I stumbled into a new technique that I thought was pretty cool. You may know about this, but I sure didn’t. So here is the problem. On my sled, there is a non-black plastic piece directly behind the exhaust cutout. Over time, this area has accumulated a bunch of exhaust residue and other crap. I’ve tried to clean it off in a similar manner to the rest of my sled in the past with no luck. I decided to try…Tire Black from Armorall. The first time I put it on, for a minute or so, I saw just enough progress to try again. The second time, I let the chemicals soak for 15 minutes. And then…I brought out the secret weapon…a potato scrubber I picked up a few years ago out of my wife’s kitchen using the old five-finger-discount. This “tool” is handy for many mechanical cleaning duties. Light scrubbing with this dandy was just the ticket. The picture above is actually after cleaning for awhile. You’ll have to trust me, it looks much better, and I am oddly satisfied (hence this post).

2. Pre-Season Checklist

I definitely would not call myself a mechanic, but I know a few. Based on their recommendations and my own level of comfort, here is what I do.

SLED

Clean belts in warm soapy water.

Clean primary clutch surfaces.

Clean exterior of sled.

Grease all zerks.

Drain and replace chain-case oil.

Adjust chain-case chain.

Visual check of primary and secondary clutches.

Check/replace spark-plugs.

Check/adjust track tension.

Check e-start connections 🙂 –for any of you purist suckers out there cussing me on e-start, there is absolutely no better investment than the MAGIC button! To quote a riding buddy, “there are two things a man needs in this world…a good woman and electric start.” Enough said. 😉

Visual inspection of hyfax.

Renew snowmobile registration.

OTHER

Attend avalanche/back country safety class to brush up on skills.

Practice using avy transceiver with a buddy.

Refill or recharge avy airbag backpack. hint: 800 lbs is not enough.

Check/replace batteries on transceiver.

Charge radio communication device (review on BC Link by BCA coming this winter).

Ensure all essentials are in your gear bag, to be taken out when you gear up: helmet, shell, uninsulated pants, boots, balaclava, goggles (2), gloves (2), extra layers, avy transceiver, BC Link radio, Go Pro, cell-phone (in off-mode except when needed for pics or emergency, otherwise it may interfere with transceivers–even in airplane mode). I place my extra gloves and goggles in a compartment on my sled.